Baton



June 24, 1941. v RQSEN 2,246,699

BATON Filed March 26, 1941 Fi I CENTER OF 6R4 V/ 7' Y latented June 24, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BATON victor Hugo Rosen, Baltimore, Md. Application March 26, 1941, Serial No. 385,223

1 claims. (Cl-. 84--'477) This invention relates to batons, and in' particular, to a baton of the'type used by drum majors. v e

The drum majors baton, in addition to being used for keeping time, is also used for directing the band in its maneuvers as members of the band are marching. In addition, the drum major t-Wirls the baton to add color to the marching. The twirling of the baton requires great skill in order to keep the baton, revolving about the drum majors finger, and occasionally, through miscalculation or lack of skill, thebaton unintentionally slips from the drum majors finger and is projected through the air or falls to the ground. Occasionally bystanders or members of the band have been injured by the projected bat-on. Where the baton falls to the ground, the drum major is, of course, embarrassed by the display of his seeming lack of proficiency. A

On occasion, the baton is actually thrown from thehand in the execution of certain routines in the art of baton twirling. The purpose of the present invention is to forestall any unintentional or accidental projection or slipping of the baton from the drum majors hand, as well as to render more easy the execution of the various baton twirling acts. I

Another purpose of my invention is to provide a baton which may beused for entertainment purposes by those unskilled in the art of baton twirling.

A further purpose of my invention is to provide a baton which children may use as a toy and become adept at :baton twirling.

Another purpose of my invention is to provide a baton which may be used to practice difiicult baton twirling acts.

Other objects and purposes of my invention will become clear upon reading the following detailed description taken together with the drawing.

In the drawing, there is illustrated in Fig. 1 one embodiment of my invention showing a staff with a finger engaging projection;

Fig. 2 shows a section of the staff and a modification or the embodiment of my invention shown in Fig. 1, in which the finger engaging projection has a modified form; while Fig. 3 shows a still further modification of the finger engaging projection on a section of the staff of the baton.

Referring now to the figure, the baton comprises a staff I, preferably tapered, and having afllxed at the larger end thereof a ball member 3, which may be suitably ornamented.

plastic or any other suitable material.

Intermediate the large and small end there is formed, either as an integral part or aifixed to the shaft, a finger engaging projection 5. As shown in Fig. l, the finger engaging projection 5 makes an acute angle with the stafi I and is located between the center of gravity and the small end of the staff. Where the s'taif is a member having uniform diameter, then the finger engaging projection is positioned outside of the region include-d between the center of gravity and the end of the staff to which the ball member 3 is affixed.

It will be readily appreciated that by placing the finger in the acute angle formed by the projection 5 and the staff I, when the baton is in repose, it will hang with the ball end down. If now the baton, as shown in Fig. 1, is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction, the baton will rotate about the finger, due to the force of gray-- ity giving an initial component in the down ward direction to maintain the staff in contact with the finger. By then rotating the finger about a small circle, in the same direction as the baton, the baton will be maintained in a rotary motion about the finger. It is important to note that in order to keep the finger in close con-tact with the staff and the finger engaging projection, the direction of rotation of the finger must be such as to supply a component of force along the axis of the staff and in a direction away from the center of gravity.

It will be readily appreciated that the finger engaging projection 5 prevents the staff from sliding along the finger so that the center of rotation of the staff is maintained in a fixed relationship. In this fashion, any of the difficult twirling maneuvers and acts are more readily performed.-

The staff I may be formed of wood, metal, Where the staff is formed from a plastic, the finger engaging member '5 may be formed or cast integral during the forming operation of the st-afi, and preferably constitute part of the mold in which the plastic is finally shaped. Where the staff is made of wood, the projection may be affixed by drilling intothe staff in the appropriate position a hole in angular relationship to the staff, and gluing into the hole a small section of dowel rod. If the stafi is made of metal, then a small metal insert may be screwed in by suitably tapping a hole in the stafi I at the proper angular relationship and threading the end of the metal insert.

It will further be appreciated that the finger engaging projection need not necessarily be formed of just one material, but may, for example, be provided with a cork layer on the inner face of the staff I and the projection 5 where the finger comes in contact to avoid blistering of the finger. The ball member 3 may be a metal sphere, suitably opened at the top to take the staff I as a force-fit.

Alternatively, the ball member 3 may be formed of wood, rubber, colored plastic, leather, or any other suitable material.

It will, of course, be appreciated that the ball member 3 may be solid or hollow, depending upon the weight desired for the baton.

Where it is desired to utilize my invention for instruction, and as a medium of entertainment for children, the stafi I may be made shorter than the conventional drum majors baton, so that younger children may easily manipulate the baton. Under these conditions, it is preferred that the ball member 3 be made of rubber, for by such construction, the baton may be used for executing an additional category of maneuvers, such as, for example, projecting the baton perpendicularto the floor or ground, with the ball member in the lower position, so that the baton will bounce up in a straight line and may be grasped upon bouncing, enabling the person to then commence the maneuvers. This aifords a very startling and spectacular maneuver, and enables the baton twirler to vary the routine of his act.

When used as a toy, or as a practice baton to teach the art of twirling, the rubber ball 3 of the baton also guards against injuring anybody, such as any other children, or the instructor, who. may be close to the baton twirler.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a modification of the finger engaging projection 5 of Fig. 1. In' Fig. 2'

the finger engaging projection is formed in the shape of a semi-torus, which has a diameter suitable to permit fitting around the finger. The finger engaging member?) may again be aifixed or cast integral with the staff I.

In Fig. 3, I have shown a further modification of the finger engaging projection, in which the finger engaging projection I I takes the form of a ring member, either formed integral with the shaft or afiixed in any suitable fashion thereto.

It will further be appreciated that in the modification shown in Fig. 2, the shaft may be gouged at the point of fixation of the finger engaging projection 9, so as'to provide a snugger fit of the finger against the shaft.

While the modification in Fig. 3 is very suitable for batons to :be used as a toy, since even very young children will then be able, at the very outset, to keep the baton against the finger," it is not a preferred form for advanced baton twirlers since. it renders the more complicated and advanced maneuvers, such as tossing the baton up in the air while twirling, and recapturing it on its downward flight, more difiicult.

It will be appreciated, of course, that other shapes and forms of the finger engaging projections may be provided, although the preferred forms have been described and shown in the drawing.

It will be further appreciated that the ball member 3 may have other forms besides spherical ones without departing from the scope of my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A twirling lbaton comprising a staff member, a ball member affixed to one end of the stafi, and a finger engaging member projecting from said staif, said finger engaging member being located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite said ball member.

2. A twirling baton comprising a tapered staff member, a ball member affixed to the end havin the largest diameter, and a finger engaging member projecting from said stafi, said finger engaging member being located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite said ball member.

3. A twirling baton comprising a tapered staff member, a ball member affixed to the end having the largest diameter, and a finger engaging member projecting angularly from said staff, said finger engaging member being located between th center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite said ball member.

4. A twirling baton comprising a tapered staff member, a rubber ball member afiixed to the end having the largest diameter, and a, finger engaging member projecting angularly from said staff,

said finger engaging member being located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite said ball member.

5. A twirling batoncomprising a staff member, a ballmember affixed to one end thereof, a semitorus finger engagingmember projecting from said staff, and located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end'ofthe baton opposite said semi-torus facing the ball. member.

6. A twirling baton comprising astafi member, a ball member afiixed to one end thereof, a finger engaging ring integral with said staff and located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite-said ball member.

'7. A' twirling baton comprising a tapered wooden staff, a rubber ball afiixed to the larger end of said staff, a'wooden finger engaging projection angularly positioned on said stair and located between the center of gravity of said baton and the end of the baton opposite said ball member. r I

. VICTOR H. ROSEN. 

